The Downside of Baseball’s Data Revolution—Long Games, Less Action

After years of ‘Moneyball’-style quantitative analysis, major-league teams are setting records for inactivity

The use of analytics, which has increased dramatically since the early 2000s, is one of baseball’s most acclaimed developments. Team front offices, once the domain of ex-players, are more commonly staffed with Ivy League graduates. Data science has become an integral part of many teams’ decision-making. Top executives have landed seats on corporate boards and given paid speeches to business groups.

Proponents of analytics are unapologetic for the kind of baseball they have helped create. “I wouldn’t call that bad. I would call that progress,” says Billy Beane, the longtime Oakland Athletics executive featured in the 2003 book “Moneyball” and portrayed by Brad Pitt in the 2011 film adaptation. “I just think the game is as good as it’s ever been.”